What to buy what to buy.................

[MikeBergy]

I'd drive diesel if they came out with something fast....

 

[reikoshea]

Audi R8?

 

[NissanNiNjA2nd]

Quoted post[/post]]I'd drive diesel if they came out with something fast....

It wont happen until Gale Banks gets ahold of a company and designs the next diesel passenger vehicle.... with performance in mind.

 

[EGProject]

TDI Jetta + chip and intake = torque like whoah.

 

[totalburnout]

Quoted post[/post]]
IS300 is a great car...but youd already mentioned it...thats why i didnt. if you find one in a standard i think your gonna be sold. I drove an auto (cause youre right, the standards DONT EXIST) and if i had the cash i probably woulda bought it.

I really don't think it was an option.

 

[jeffie7]

I still really like the BMWs... sigh.

Tips From a BMW Tech
I am sure many of these things have been said when looking to buy a used E46, but since I do PDI's every day I think I will give you my own list of stuff to look for, and things that brake on an E46:
1. Rear lower control arms! Why is it that every redneck tow truck driver has to hook J-hooks on these flimsy things?!, but seriously it happens a-LOT so look at em, it affects alignment

2. Modifications: let's face it BMW isn't perfect, but whoever decided before you that they knew more than the countless droves of anal-retentive engeneers that designed the car, is most likely an idiot. so make sure that all parts are original or "tastefully" modified and not Autozone Crap

3. Cam position sensors. They go bad... nuf said
4. Ignition coils. okay these get tricky cause you can't really bust open the engine covers to check, but the original BREMI pencil coils are trash if they have the plastic bodies, the updated ones will have a metal shielding. YOU WILL GET MISSES EVENTUALLY WITH THE OLD BREMI'S

5. Service checklist. I'm a tech, so sue me, but there is nothing like having a car that a bunch of money ungr techs look over at every service. if the car has a long service list, the prior owner probably bought all the stuff too, which means less to worry about.

6. front lower control arm bushings. That annoying "clunk" you hear every time the brakes are applied is the sound of the Lower control arm bushings deteriorating, Trust me REPLACE THEM IF THEIR BAD, the consequences of letting them go too far are expensive.

7. right and left frontal underbody covers: every dits that has run over a parking lot bumper in a parking space risks tearing off these parts. they will house the exterior temp sensor and the heated washer nozzle temp sensor (the long skinny one is exterior temp) and if the Ext temp sensor is missing, guess what, you have no A/C.

8. Main Belt tensioner: this one get's tricky to explain. the regular mechanical tensioner is spring loaded to hold tension on the belt, the UPDATED tensioner is hydraulic and act's like a shock. the mechanical type will over time make a horrific howling noise.

9. Strut mount Pins: Okay this one is iffy. there are pins in the strut tower from the factory that require "punching out" before an alignment is performed, so if they are missing, the car MAY have been in a wreck, it is not sure fire, but it should raise your eyebrows if they are missing

10. Harsh 2-1 downshift: this is a software issue in the EGS(transmission) module, with a reprogramming from your local Bimmer dealer it can be easily fixed. note there MAY be other problems, this is just the quickest fix, and is not uncommon

11. Blown Cig lighter fuse. not huge, just to note BMW's official stance is that the Cigarette lighter is ONLY for the lighting of Cigarettes, and other devices like Cell phone charges may blow the fuse, and don't be an idiot, put the same damn size fuse back in the holdster, otherwise you fry the wiring

12. Seat belt tensioners: just a common problem that develops with age, it will cause the SRS light to come on

13. Sun roof shade. Okay, the shade comes apart due to the slide in the roof, so If you see the shade is a little loose BACK AWAY FROM THE CAR, this is an expensive customer pay job. if it is still warranty, your in the green, but you are looking in the thousands to do this job if it is coming from your own pocket

14. Various burnt bulbs and sockets. in the front turn signals the socket and bulb burns, it's 20-30 bucks to fix per side. nothing huge

15. Door seals on Coupe's. These seals are known for pealing off at the edges, they are farily expensive @ $200 for one seal not including labor, but it happens. so if your buying a coupe, get ready for this repair

16. Window Regualtors. One of the most predominant problems with bimmers. These regulators are a light weight design and break often. if you hear a tell-tale clicking in the window when moving up or down, it's gonna need a regualtor soon

This covers the most predominant concerns on an E46 that I have done so far. These cars are great when taken care of and a burden if left uncared for. hopefully this will aid you in purchasing that E46 of your dreams.
Reply With Quote

 

[Seany-izzle]

Quoted post[/post]]

Quoted post[/post]]
IS300 is a great car...but youd already mentioned it...thats why i didnt. if you find one in a standard i think your gonna be sold. I drove an auto (cause youre right, the standards DONT EXIST) and if i had the cash i probably woulda bought it.

I really don't think it was an option.

yes it was, it just didnt come out until two years after production. Two years? something like that... 2-3.

 

[reikoshea]

sadly we dont work for ANY (out of 200 dealers, i said ANY) lexus dealers. Porsche, Ferrari, Aston, Maserati....no lexus...how crazy is that. A friend of mine drives the IS...im lusting after.

 

[MikeBergy]

That is because lexus isn't even in the same category as those cars. The companies you mentioned are ACTUAL luxury car companies, while lexus is just a upper crust Toyota...IMO of course. I am sure lexus owners would tell me otherwise, lol.

 

[reikoshea]

lol, but we also work for the big 3, regular toyota, Acura (no honda dealers, WTF!??), nissan, hyundai and kia.

When i made calls and did leg work it was only for exotic/high end cars. Life is better since i became lead web developer...i can drive ferraris pretty easily (when the boss is around) but the owner of a chevy dealer we work for told me i could NOT drive a Z06...thats effed up.

 

[Airjockie]

Quoted post[/post]]
That is because lexus isn't even in the same category as those cars. The companies you mentioned are ACTUAL luxury car companies, while lexus is just a upper crust Toyota...IMO of course. I am sure lexus owners would tell me otherwise, lol.

Yup, and the Acura NSX is just an upper crust Honda

 

[Celerity]

BMW is a company just like Toyota. They offer different purchasing levels just the same. They aren't elite in Germany, in fact there are kids in german high schools who get laughed at driving a 318.

The C230 Benz is the same way. These cars aren't cheap in any stretch, but only certain countries regard the marque as a luxury brand.

there are only a few Luxury brands that are luxury only. Cadillac (Until they made a truck, what the fuck) Lincoln, Rolls Royce / Bentley, Jaguar (They make Estate cars.. slightly different category) and those likes. BMW is just Germany's Chevy.

-> Steve

 

[Battle Pope]

The big key with BMW is that they've fooled everyone in the US into thinking that they're super special, just because they're german.

It's called clever marketing.

 

[reikoshea]

and the M3....but hey chevys got the corvette, right?

 

[MikeBergy]

Quoted post[/post]]

Quoted post[/post]]
That is because lexus isn't even in the same category as those cars. The companies you mentioned are ACTUAL luxury car companies, while lexus is just a upper crust Toyota...IMO of course. I am sure lexus owners would tell me otherwise, lol.

Yup, and the Acura NSX is just an upper crust Honda

I'm okay with that... I still love the NSX.

Quoted post[/post]]
BMW is a company just like Toyota. They offer different purchasing levels just the same. They aren't elite in Germany, in fact there are kids in german high schools who get laughed at driving a 318.

The C230 Benz is the same way. These cars aren't cheap in any stretch, but only certain countries regard the marque as a luxury brand.

there are only a few Luxury brands that are luxury only. Cadillac (Until they made a truck, what the fuck) Lincoln, Rolls Royce / Bentley, Jaguar (They make Estate cars.. slightly different category) and those likes. BMW is just Germany's Chevy.

-> Steve

When bmw and mercedes start putting cloth interiors and sub 20k price tags on their cars, I'll put them in the same category as toyota and nissan and the like. BMW and Mercedes just make nicer cars straight up. VW is germany's chevy.

 

[NissanNiNjA2nd]

Quoted post[/post]]and the M3....but hey chevys got the corvette, right?

the Z06 out classes the M3.

 

[reikoshea]

that it does. i still wanna drive one...but i only know one dealer in the area with one (happends to be the company for the website im working on) and the owner wont let me drive it

 

[Seany-izzle]

out classes?? maybe out run or out handle, but class?? hahahahahahhahahhhhahahaaahhahahahaahahhahahaha *choking cough* hahahahahahahhahaahahhahaahahhahaahahhahaahahhahaahahhahaahahhahaahahhahaahahhahaahahhahaahahhahaahahhahaahahhahaahahhahaahahhahaahahhahaahahhahaahahhahaahahhahaahahhahaahahhahaahahhahaahahhahaahahhahaahahhahaahahhahaahahhahaahahhahaahahhahaahahhahaahahhahaahahhahaahahhahaahahhahaahahhahaahahhahaah

 

[FFCiv]

saab 9/3 you can get them so loaded for a great price

 

[reikoshea]

but but...the key.......its not in the right spot..